Flame retardants are generally well known for the treatment of fires and as a fire prevention tool. They are chemical compounds used in thermosets, textiles and coatings that inhibit or resist the spread of fire. Flame retardants are typically added to consumer products to meet flammability standards for furniture, textiles, electronics, and insulation.
Many combinations of inorganic and organic chemicals such as chlorinated organic compounds, amino compounds, asbestos, urea, melamine, antimony trioxide and mixtures thereof, have been used in flame retardants. However, many of these compounds utilize toxic chemicals such as halogenated compounds that have negative effects on the environment and human health. Indeed, these toxic compounds have been known to degrade over time in the end products in which they've been either integrated in or coated on, emitting toxic gasses that have been linked to several cancers and neurological diseases. (Roze et al. Environmental Health Perspectives (December 2009) 117(12): 1953-1958)
Many of the starting chemicals and halogenated compounds used in current flame retardancy methods require additives in the manufacturing process to neutralize pH. In addition, existing flame retardant formulations tend to impair the integrity of the materials in which they are integrated in or coated on. Such flame retardant formulations are readily available in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,270,694 discloses urea-organic compound-based flame retardants.
The non-toxic flame retardant formulations of the present invention are generated by the reaction of boric acid with diammonium phosphate. U.S. Pat. No. 5,082,640 discloses methods of reacting boric acid with diammonium phosphate for generating luminescent grade boron phosphate for fluorescent lamp phosphors. However, the methods disclosed require a wash step with ammonium hydroxide which washes away excess boric acid. The resulting luminescent grade boron phosphate contains a homogenous mix of equal parts boric acid and diammonium phosphate.
Accordingly, these references do not disclose the embodiments of the present invention.
Therefore, a need exists in the art for an improved non-toxic, yet effective flame retardant formulation. In particular, there exists a need for an improved method of bringing flame retardancy to products without impairing the desired structural integrity of the materials within the products. The flame retardants of the present invention offer such improved flame retardant formulations and methods for bringing flame retardancy to consumer products.
All documents and references cited herein and in the referenced patent documents, are hereby incorporated herein by reference.